Photocomposing apparatus



Oct. 5, 1965 R. M. PATRICK 3,209,664

PHOTOCOMPOSING APPARATUS Filed Nov. 29, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTQR.242 M, P47'2/CK ATTORNEY Oct. 5, 1965 R. M. PATRICK PHOTOCOMPOSINGAPPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 29, 1962 INVENTQR FA Y M /7 m/czTJ E-E United States Patent 3,209,664 PIIUTOCOMPOSING APPARATUS Ray M.Patrick, RR. 1, El Reno, Okla. Filed Nov. 29, 1962, Ser. No. 240,890

claims. (Cl. 95-45 The present invention relates to the art ofphotocomposing and more particularly, but not by way of limitation,relates to an improved method and apparatus for photographicallycomposing a desired word or words on an elongated film strip by means ofa font transparency.

As is well known in the printing art, usually the first step in printinglarge spread advertisements in newspapers and magazines, as well as inprinting posters and hand bills, is to prepare all art work togetherwith the desired words and phrases on a layout sheet. A photograph isthen made of the layout sheet which is used to produce printing platesor similar devices from which a large number of copies can be printed.The present invention is concerned with the compositi sf the words andphrases and other characters such as numbers for placement on the layoutsheet as well as with the composition of headlines for newspapers orother purposes requiring large letters which need to be uniform andneat. This type of layout work is particularly useful in the offsetprinting wherein all master printing plates are prepared from aphotograph of an entire page of printed or art material.

Various devices have been devised for photographically composing wordsand phrases. In general, the devices utilized a font transparency whichis essentially opaque and has transparent characters for each of theletters and symbols of the alphabet and number system. Of course, thecharacters on any particular font may be of any desired style, such asscript or block letters, and further may have various special texturessuch as crosshatching, plat, dots, and the like to produce specialeffects. Each character of the font has an index mark on each side toassist in aligning the character in the proper position so that equalspacing can be maintained between adjacent printed characters. Theappropriate character of the font is positioned over a portion of alight sensitive strip of paper or film and then subjected to light whichpasses through the transparent character and exposes that portion of thefilm strip. The devices utilize various means for protecting theremainder of the film strip from exposure. A series of separateexposures are made of the successive characters to produce the words orphrases required. The film strip can then be developed and pasted on alayout sheet in the desired positions. The layout sheet can then bephotographed as previously described.

In general, the photocomposing methods and devices previously employedhave utilized rather elaborate systems for properly aligning the fontover each successive portion of the film strip. The more elaborate andexpensive devices function fairly satisfactorily, but are of courserelatively expensive and somewhat complicated and tedious to operate,and consequently are impractical for use by small printing shops whereonly a little photocomposing work is required. Attempts to produce asimplified and economical photocomposing machine have been made.However, these machines have, in general, been incapable of producingneat work primarily, it is believed, because no accurate means have beendevised for properly indexing each character of the font with respect tothe film strip and further because the film strip has not been fullyprotected from secondary exposure due to light leakage past theshielding apparatus. This is due primarily, it is believed, to the factthat the film strip must be moved longtiudinally after each character isexposed in order to position the film so as to be exposed to the nextcharacter, and it is very difficult to maintain proper indexing andspacing between the adjacent letters on the exposed film strip.

Therefore, it is an important object of the present invention to providean improved photocomposing method and apparatus whereby accurateindexing or spacing between adjacent characters can be maintained whileeffectively shielding the film strip from secondary exposure.

Another very important object of the present invention is to provide aphotocomposing device which is of very simple and economicalconstruction, and which can be effectively operated by relativelyinexperienced personnel.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a highlyversatile photocomposing device of the type described which can print alarge range of font sizes on a large range of film strip sizes.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide aphotocomposing device of the type described which does not use anexcessive amount of film.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide aphotocomposing device of the type described which is compact in size andis therefore fully portable.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide aphotocomposing device of the type described which utilizes one of thesimplest and most inexpensive types of font transparencies.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide aphotocomposing device of the type described which is capable of usingadhesive-backed photosensitive paper without interfering with thespacing accuracy.

Many additional objects and advantages of the present invention will beevident to those skilled in the art from the following detaileddescription and drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective View of a photocomposing deviceconstructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the top of the device of FIG. 1, showing thelight source housing in dotted outline;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken substantially on lines 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken substantially on lines 44 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a top view of a segment of a conventional font transparency;and,

FIG. 6 is a plan view of a segment of a typical film strip exposed inaccordance with the method of the present invention.

Referring now to the drawings, a photocomposing device constructed inaccordance with the present invention is indicated generally by thereference numeral 10. The photocomposing device 10 comprises a generallyrectangular support plate 12 the upper surface of which functions as asupport surface for an elongated film strip 20 and elongated fonttransparency 94 presently to be described in greater detail. A pair ofspaced apertures 14 and 16, as best seen in FIGv 4, are provided forpassing the film strip 20 through the plate 12. A film magazine 18 isconnected to the underside of the plate 12 for storing the elongatedfilm strip 20. The film strip 20 passes over a roller 22 disposed in theaperture 16 and journaled on the plate 12, over the upper supportsurface of the plate 12, and around a roller 24 disposed in the aperture14 and journaled on the plate 12. The film strip 20 is then threadedbetween and is frictionally gripped by an idler roller 26 and a driveroller 28. The drive roller 28 is connected to a shaft 29 which extendsto the front edge of the plate 12 and is connected to a hand crank 30,both shown in superimposed dotted outline in FIG. 4 and in full outlinein FIG. 1. When the drive roller 28 is rotated by the hand crank 30 theelongated film strip 20 will be pulled from the magazine 18 through theaperture 16, across the support face of the support plate 12, and backthrough the aperture 14 to a point below the plate 12. The plate 12perferably forms the lid of a light-tight container indicated generallyby the reference numeral 31 and having a bottom 32, a front wall 34, arearwall 36, right-hand side wall 38 and left-hand side wall 40. .Theplate 12 is preferably hinged to the top of the back wall 36 by hingemeans 42 and may have a peripheral depending skirt 44 to insure thatlight does not enter the interior of the container. It will be notedfrom FIG. 3 that the shaft 29 extends through the skirt 44 so as topermit the plate 12 to be lifted to gain access to the container. Thusit will be noted that the film strip passes from the interior of thelighttight container through the aperture 16 and over the supportsurface 12 back through the aperture 14 into the light-tight container31.

A suitable guide means, indicated generally by the reference numeral 50,is positioned on the upper surface of the plate 12. The guide means 50comprises a pair of elongated plates 52 and 54 which are disposed inparallel relationship with the transverse dimension disposed normal tothe support surface of the plate 12. The parallel guide plates 52 and 54extend between the apertures 14 and 16 and are connected to plates 56and 58, respectively, which rest flat on the upper surface of the plate12. The plate 56 is provided with a pair of elongated slots 60 which arepositioned around bolts 62 which are connected to and project upwardlyfrom the plate 12. Thumb screws 64 are threaded onto the bolts 62 tosecure the plate 56 and therefore the guide plate 52 in any selectedtransverse position relative to the support plate 12. The plate 58 hassimilar adjusting means, including elongated slots 66, upright bolts 68and thumb screws 70, for securing the guide plate 54 in any selectedposition. Thus it will be evident that the two guide lates 52 and '54can be adjustably positioned to provide any desired spacing between theopposed faces of the plates, of course within the limits permitted bythe slots 60 and 66. A suitable support means, preferably a roller 72,is journaled on the plate 58 by a suitable journal block 74. The roller72 extends transversely of the guide plates 52 and 54 and is preferablyof such a length as to extend completely across the space between thetwo guide plates when the plates are adjusted to provide a maximumspacing. A similar support roller 76 is journaled on a journal block 78which is also connected to the plate 58. The roller 76 also extendsbeyond the guide plate 52. As can best be seen in FIG. 4, the supportrollers 72 and 76 are positioned at a point above the upper face of thesupport plate 12, for purposes presently to be described.

A pair of elongated shutter strips are disposed between the guide plates52 and 54 in end-to-end relationship, the left-hand shutter strip beingindicated by the reference numeral 80 and the right-hand shutter stripby the reference numeral 82. The two shutter strips are of substantiallyidentical construction and each is sufficiently long to cover the entiresurface of the support plate 12 between the apertures 14 and 16. Theadjacent ends 80a and 82a are preferably bevelled as best seen in FIG.4, and a pair of upright dowels 84 and 86 are preferably connectedadjacent the ends 80a and 82a and extend above the guide plates 52 and54 to serve as handles for conveniently sliding the shutter strips. Apair of S- shaped springs 88 and 90 pass through the dowels 84 and 86and engage the guide plates 52 and 54 to secure the shutter strips 80and 82 in any set position. It will be noted that the shutter strips 80and 82 are free to move longitudinally between the guide plates 52 and54. However, for purposes presently to be described, the shutter strips80 and 82 must extend transversely between the guide plates 52 and 54 soas to prevent light from striking the film strip 20, and accordingly maybe covered with felt or other resilient material along the oppositeedges which are in contact with the guide plates 52 and 54,

4- and along the bottoms which are in contact with an elongated fonttransparency strip 94.

The elongated font transparency strip 94 is disposed between the guideplates 52 and 54 and passes between the support rollers 72 and 76 andthe shutter strips and 82, respectively, as can best be seen in FIG. 4.It will be noted that the shutter strips 80 and 82 are thereforedisposed over both the film strip 20 and the font transparency strip 94and that when the shutter strips 80 and 82 are pressed downwardly, theends 80a and 82a hold the font transparency strip 94 in superimposedcontact with the film strip 20 in the zone between the ends 80a and 82a.From the portion of the font transparency strip 94 shown in FIG. 5, itwill be noted that the major portion of the font transparency is opaquewhile the characters 95 of the alphabet and also preferably the numbersystem are transparent. Of course it will be appreciated that the fonttransparency strip 94 will contain all the characters, includingletters, punctuation marks and numbers, which may be required. The fonttransparency strip 94 should have a blank portion at each end of thestrip of suflicient length that any character can be positioned ateither end of the support surface plate 12 while still grasping the fonttransparency strip 94. The font transparency strip 94 should also be ofsubstantially the same width as the film strip 20 and as the shutterstrips 80 and 82, as will presently be described. As can be seen in FIG.5, a left-hand index mark 96 and a right-hand index mark 98 is providedfor each of the characters. The index marks 96 and 98 may merely betransparent portions, as will be the case with presently availablestandard font transparencies, but preferably are apertures in the stripfor purposes presently to be described.

A light box 100 is supported by a flexible tubular conduit 102 which mayconveniently be connected to the back wall 36 as best seen in FIG. 3.The light box 100 preferably contains two separate compartments in whichare located two separately controllable lights 103 and 104. Aconventional red filter 106 covers the light 103, and providessufficient illumination to work in a dark room without exposing the filmstrip 20. The other light 104 is either uncovered or covered only by asuitable diffusing filter 108 and is used to expose the film strip 20 aswill presently be described. The exposure light 104 is preferablycontrolled by a switch 110 which may conveniently be located on thesupport plate 12. Of course, suitable electrical leads (not illustrated)are provided to energize the two lights 103 and 104. The flexibleconduit 102 provides a convenient means for adjustably supporting thelight box 100 in substantially any desired position over the film strip20. The photocomposing device 10 must be operated in a conventionalphotographic dark room and is prepared for operation by threading thefilm strip 20 over the roller 22, across the upper surface of thesupport plate 12, around the roller 24 and then between the idler anddrive rollers 26 and 28, respectively. Next a font transparency strip 94of the same width as the film strip 20 and the desired style ofcharacters is placed in longitudinally aligned, superimposedrelationship over the film strip 20 and over the support rollers 72 and76. The shutter strips 80 and 82 are then positioned over the fonttransparency strip 94 substantially as shown in FIG. 4. The thumb screws64 are then loosened, the plate 56 moved until the guide plate 54 isproperly aligned with the film strip 20 and the thumb screws 64tightened to securely lock the guide plate 52 in place. Next the thumbscrews 70 are loosened and the plate 58 moved until the guide plate 54abuts snugly against the shutter strips 80 and 82 which, as previouslymentioned, are of substantially the same width as the font transparencystrip 94 and film strip 20.

The device 10 may be used to practice the method of the presentinvention, and for the method, the shutter strip 80 will be referred toas the left-hand shutter strip and the shutter strip 82 will be referredto as the right-hand shutter strip, and for convenience of discussion,all movements and ends of the various components of the structure willbe referred to in accordance with this orientation. As previouslymentioned, the device It) must be operated in a photographic dark room.However, the light 103 can be turned on to provide sufficientillumination to work without exposing the film strip 20 because of thered filter 106. Assuming now that the film strip is to be exposed withthe phrase A MAN IN as illustrated in FIG. 6, the left-hand shutterstrip 80 is first moved as far to the left as is practical and the end80a pressed downwardly lightly against the font transparency 94 and filmstrip 20. The right-hand shutter strip 82 is then moved until the end82a is spaced from the end 80a of the lefthand shutter strip a distancecorresponding approximately to the width of the character A on the fonttransparency strip 94. Next the font transparency strip 94 is moved bygripping the overhanging ends until the character A is positionedbetween the spaced ends 80a and 82a and the left-hand index mark 96aligned generally with the edge 88a. The edge 82a is then moved until itis aligned generally with the right-hand index mark 98 of the characterA. It will be appreciated that precise alignment of the edges 80a and82a with the index marks 96 and 98 is not essential for the firstcharacter of any sequence, since the only requirement is that theremainder of the font transparency strip 94 be shielded from theexposure light 1154. The ends 88a and 82a may then be pressed downwardlyto securely press the font transparency strip 94 against the film strip24). Next the switch 118 is pressed for a predetermined period of timeto completely expose the film strip 28 beneath the transparent portionof the character A positioned be tween the ends of the shutter strips 80and 82.

After the exposure of the character A is completed, the exposure light104 is of course turned off. Then, while holding the font transparencystrip 94 stationary, which will automatically be accomplished by theguide plates 52 and 54 and the end 82a of the right-hand shutter strip82, which frictionally grip the font transparency strip 94, the shutterstrip 80 is moved to the right until the end 80a is precisely alignedwith the righthand index mark 98 of the character A which has just beenexposed, which will be the index point 112 on the film strip 20 as shownin FIG. 6. The right-hand shutter strip 82 is then moved to the right adistance approximating the width of the next character, which in theexample of FIG. 6 is a blank space. The font transparency strip 94 isthen gripped at each end and moved longitudinally until any standardwidth character is positioned between the ends 80a and 82a to serve as aspace. The left-hand index mark 96 of the standard width character isprecisely aligned with the end 80a of the left-hand shutter strip 80which as stated is index point 112. For convenience, the right-handshutter strip 82 is preferably moved until the end 82a is preciselyaligned with the right-hand index mark 98 of the standard widthcharacter, which will be the index point 114 on the film strip 20. Theright-hand shutter strip 82 can be gently pressed downwardly to assistin holding the font transparency and shutter strip stationary and theleft-hand shutter strip 80 moved to the right into contact with theright-hand shutter strip 82. The end 80a of the left-hand shutter strip80 will then be aligned with the right-hand index mark of the standardwidth character and with the index point 114. Of course no exposureshould be made of the character being used to make the space.

The font transparency strip 94 is next moved until the left-hand indexmark 96 of the character M is precisely aligned with the end 80a of theleft-hand shutter strip purposes of disclosing 80, which is now alignedat index point 114 of the film strip 20. The end 82a of the right-handshutter strip 82 is preferably aligned with the rght-hand index mark 98of the character M, which then corresponds to the index point 116 inFIG. 6. The two shutter strips and 82 may then be gently presseddownwardly to hold the font transparency strip 94 firmly against thefilm strip 20 and the character M exposed by turning on the exposurelight 104 for a predetermined time period. Since the end 82a of theright-hand shutter strip 82 is precisely aligned with the right-handindex mark 98 of the character M, the left-hand shutter strip 80 can bemoved until the end 80a contacts the end 82a while preferably holdingdown gently on the right-hand shutter strip 82 to prevent dislocation ofthe font transparency strip 94. After the end 80a of the left-handshutter strip 88 is positioned at the right-hand index mark 98 of thecharacter M, which corresponds to index point 116, the right-handshutter strip 82 can then be moved to the right a distance approximatingthe width of the character A, and the font transparency strip 94 shiftedlongitudinally until the left-hand index mark 96 of the character A isprecisely aligned with the end 80a of the left-hand shutter strip 80.The right-hand shutter strip 82 can again be positioned with the end 82aprecisely aligned with the right-hand index mark 98 of the character A,"which will be index point 118, and the third character then exposed byturning on the light 104.

This procedure can be rapidly repeated until all of the film strip 20 onthe surface of the support plate 12 has been exposed. Of course it willbe appreciated that some portions of the film strip 20 at each end arenot conveniently accessible and accordingly will not be exposed eachtime. After the last character has been exposed, a pencil mark is madeon the right-hand index mark of the last character through the aperturesat the index marks. If only one aperture is provided in the entire fonttransparency strip 94, as will sometimes be the case, it will beappreciated that the end 82a of the right-hand shutter strip 82 willserve as the index guide and the aperture in the font transparency 94can be positioned adjacent the guide so that the mark can be made on thefilm strip 20. Next, the hand crank 30 is turned to pull the film strip20 from right to left across the support plate 12 until the mark made onthe film strip is positioned at the left-hand end of the support plate.The end 80a of the left-hand shutter strip 80 is then precisely alignedwith the mark on the film strip and the procedure for exposing eachcharacter repeated.

It will be noted that the film strip as successive portions of the filmstrip are exposed. The film strip 20 is protected from secondaryexposure by the guide plates 52 and 54 and the shutter strips 80 and 82,which also cover the apertures 14 and 16. Since the film strip 20remains stationary during successive character exposures, the spacingbetween the successive character exposures can be accurately maintained.After the composition of the desired message is complete, the hand crank30 is turned until the exposed film strip is moved through the rollers26 and 28. The film strip can then be torn off and developed byconventional methods. After the film strip is developed, the excessportions of the film strip, especially the lower portion where theseries of index points 112, 114, etc., will appear, can be trimmed offand the film strip pasted or otherwise affixed to a layout sheet whichcan subsequently be photographed.

From the above detailed description of a preferred embodiment of thepresent invention, it will be evident to those skilled in the art that avery simple and economical photocomposing device has been disclosed. Thephotocomposing device may be easily and quickly operated by relativelyunskilled personnel after a minimum period of practice to produce highlyaccurate and neat work. Any width of film strip and font transparencystrip can be used by reason of the adjustable guide means 50. In thisre- 20 remains stationary gard it will be appreciated that the guidemeans may be altered to some degree without departing from the scope ofthe present invention. For example, one or both of the guide plates 52and 54 could be spring biased against the shutter strips 80 and 82. Itwill be noted that the support rollers 72 and 76 hold the fonttransparency strip 94 and the shutter strips 80 and 82 out of contactwith the film strip 20 to prevent scratching of the film. However, theends 80a and 82a of the shutter strips hold the character of the fonttransparency strip 94 which is being exposed in close contact with thefilm strip to insure sharp characters on the finished product. Thedevice is relatively compact and therefore portable. In this respect, itwill be appreciated that containers ofthe necessary developing solutionscan be carried in the container 31 together with the various styles offont transparencies 94, the shutter strips 80 and 82, and the light box100 if desired. Since the film strip 20 is contained within alight-tight magazine 18, there is little danger that the film strip willbe prematurely exposed when carrying the device 10 outside a dark room.Of course the device must be operated in a dark room as previouslydescribed.

Having thus described preferred embodiments of the present invention, itis to be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterationscan be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of thepresent invention as defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A photocomposing device for photographically reproducing on anelongated film strip, a series of characters from an elongated fonttransparency having opaque portions and alignment indices for eachcharacter, the device comprising:

plate means having an elongated support surface for supporting the fonttransparency and the film strip in superimposed relationship;

a pair of parallel elongated guide means carried by said plate means,said guide means being spaced one from the other to form a channeltherebetween to receive said film strip and said transparency;

aligned, first and second elongated shutter strips slidably disposedwithin said channel and adapted to form a substantially light-tight sealtherewith;

means adjacent each end of said channel for supporting a portion of saidfont transparency in a position above and away from said film strip; and

a light disposed above the shutter strips for exposing that portion ofthe film strip not covered by the opaque portion of the overlying fonttransparency or the shutter strips.

2. The device defined in claim 1, further characterized to include alight-tight container including said plate means as the top thereof,said container including a pair of spaced apertures for passing the filmstrip from the container over the plate means and back into thecontainer.

3. The device defined in claim 2 and further characterized to includeresilient means mounted on said shutter strips for engaging said guidemeans to frictionally maintain said strips within said channel.

4. A photocomposing device for photographically reproducing, on anelongated film strip having a width, a series of characters from anelongated font transparency of the same width and having opaque portionsand alignment indices for each character comprising the device asdefined in claim 1 further characterized by:

a magazine connected to the underside of the plate means for holding theelongated film strip before it passes upwardly through one of theapertures; and,

drive means connected to the underside of the support plate for pullingthe film strip from the magazine through one of the apertures, acrossthe support surface and through the other aperture.

5. The device defined in claim 1 wherein:

at least one of the elongated guide plates is adjustable transversely ofthe support surface for accommodating film strips of different widths.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,237,239 8/17Bunnell 954.5 2,160,750 5/39 Meyer 954.5 2,780,151 2/57 Borisof 954.52,887,024 5/59 Horman 954.5 2,890,634 6/59 Rondthaler 954.5 3,008,39211/61 Mann 954.5

NORTON ANSHER, Primary Examiner.

JOHN M. HORAN, Examiner.

1. A PHOTOCOMPOSING DEVICE FOR PHTOGRAPHICALLY REPRODUCING ON ANELONGATED FILM STIP, A SERIES OF CHARACTERS FROM AN ELONGATED FONTTRANSPARENCY HAVING OPAQUE PORTIONS AND ALIGNMENTS INDICES FOR EACHCHARACTER, THE DEVICE COMPRISING: PLATE MEANS HAVING AN ELONGATEDSUPPORTED SURFACE FOR SUPPORTING THE FONT TRANSPARENCY AND THE FILMSTRIP IN SUPERIMPOSED RELATIONSHIP; A PAIR OF PARALLEL ELONGATED GUIDEMEANS CARRIED BY SAID PLATE MANS, SAID GUIDE MEANS BEING SPACED ONE FROMTHE OTHER TO FORM A CHANNEL THEREBETWEEN TO RECEIVE SAID FILM STRIP ANDSAID TRANSPARENCY; ALIGNED, FIRST AND SECOND ELONGATED SHUTTER STRIPSSLIDABLY DISPOSED WITHIN SAID CHANNEL AND ADAPTED TO FORM ASUBSTANTIALLY LIGHT-TIGHT SEAL THEREWITH; MEANS ADJACENT EACH END OFSAID CHANNEL FOR SUPPORTING A PORTION OF SAID FONT TRANSPARANCY IN APOSITION ABOVE AND AWAY FROM SAID FILM STRIP; AND A LIGHT DISPOSED ABOVETHE SHUTTER STRIPS FOR EXPOSING THAT PORTION OF THE FILM STRIP NOTCOVERED BY THE OPAQUE PORTIN OF THE OVERLYING FONT TRANSPARENCY OR THESHUTTER STRIPS.